


Chapter 9 but Sadder

by KC_R



Series: The Blind Vessel [2]
Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: M/M, This isn’t canon, and I wanted to post it in a separate fic to prevent confusion, but it’s sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-11 23:21:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29000637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KC_R/pseuds/KC_R
Summary: Posted this in a separate fic to prevent confusion
Relationships: Markoth/Xero (Hollow Knight)
Series: The Blind Vessel [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2127519
Comments: 5
Kudos: 11





	Chapter 9 but Sadder

There was a gentle knock at their door, followed by the creaking of their door pushing open. “Pst! Kid! I wanna show you something.” Xero whispered. Hallow sat up, rubbing their eye sockets, and then pulling on their horn until they heard a crack. What was Xero doing up? Wasn’t it close to midnight? Maybe they overslept?

They make the sign for breakfast. “Yes, yes it’s breakfast time. Hurry up, you don’t want to miss the sweet rolls, do you?” Hallow jumped to their feet, rushing over to Xero. The Knight grabbed their hand rather roughly. “We need to hurry, come on.”

Xero pulled them down the hall, moving much quicker than their little legs could so they ended up mostly getting dragged. Their knees and shoulder hurt, and they realized they weren’t going in the direction of the kitchen. Where were they going? Why was Xero acting weird? And why was he being so mean? Hallow started to struggle, thrashing in hopes of freeing their arm. It hurt! It felt like their arm was going to tear off!

“STOP STRUGGLING!” Xero screamed in a voice so unlike his. It almost seemed to echo in their head. “YOU SELFISH BRAT! GET OFF YOUR ASS!”

“Xero?” A familiar voice asked. Xero stopped pulling on their arm. “Xero, what are you doing?”

\----

When he awoke, Xero was no longer wrapped in his arms. That wasn’t good. That was likely the worst thing that he could wake up to. He put his helmet on and rushed out of the room, worry thick in his throat. In his haste, he had left his nail and shield in his room, but it didn’t matter. He needed to find Xero as soon as possible, before something bad happened, before it was too late.

He checked the pale child’s room but it was empty. They wouldn’t have left their room on their own, Xero must’ve taken them. He picked up his paste, breaking into a full-on sprint. There was a trail of orange, whether it was blood or tears he couldn’t tell. Oh no, oh no oh no oh no! Gods dammit! His worst fears had come true. Xero was fully infected or reaching the point of being fully infected. He needed to find him fast, faster than he already was. Maybe there was something he could do, some kind of remedy he could give him to protect him from the plague.

He ran like his life depended on it. It likely did, he couldn’t imagine a life without Xero. What would he tell Seer? What would he tell Revek? What would he tell Thistlewind? What would he tell Marmu? How would he explain to his own child that one of their parents wasn’t coming home?

He finally came to the end of the trail, seeing Xero pulling at the pale child while they struggled to get free of his grasp.

“Xero?” He asked, voice unsteady and full of fear. Xero went still. “Xero, what are you doing?”

“Markoth, what did I tell you?” Xero hissed. “I told you to run, I told you that I was going to hurt you. Why are you still here? Why aren’t you running?” Xero yelled. A voice in his head screamed at him to kill the traitor, and as hard as he tried to shove it away, it was getting a hold of him.

“Xero please, it’s gonna be okay, you’re stronger than her, you can do this. Don’t give in, think of Marmu, she needs you.” Xero shoved Hallow away from him before collapsing onto his knees. He tore off his helmet and clawed at the sides of his head. His eyes glowed orange and infected tears fell from them. His fingers drew blood as he shoved them deeper into his head.

“GET OUT OF MY HEAD! GET OUT GET OUT GET OUT GET OUT!” He screamed. Markoth rushed forward to try and stop Xero from hurting himself any more than he already was.

“It’s going to be okay Xero, stay with me now.” The moment he got close, Xero lunged at him, wrapping his claws around the moth’s neck.

Markoth tried to pry his husband’s hands off of him but they were locked in place.

“Xero!” He managed to say. “Let go of me, please. It’s going to be okay, I promise, it’s going to be okay Xero, you just need to let go of me.” He gasped.

Xero garbled something, barely escaping past the infection in his throat. His grip tightened more, his vision going dark in the corners.

“Xero? Markoth? What’s going on?” Xero’s grip tightened just a bit more, and then he twisted.

There was a loud snap, and then Xero let Markoth’s corpse fall to the ground, neck broken.

“Xero? Xero! What’s the meaning of this? What have you done?” The King yelled. Xero collapsed to his knees and vomited up a large glob of infection, before seemingly coming to his senses.

“W-where am I? What?” Hemolymph covered his hands. His eyes focused on the corpse of his husband and he knew he was about to throw up, but he couldn’t, his throat was being blocked by something. He picked up his husband, whose head hung limp in his arms. “Oh no no no no no no, Markoth no! It’s gonna be okay honey, it’s gonna be okay, I promise you’re gonna pull through. What did you do to him?! It’s gonna be okay, I can fix this, I’ll protect you, I promise, I promise I will, please wake up please Markoth please I need you.”

“I think you mean what did you do. You’ve destroyed any hope of peace between us and the moths!” The King hissed, summoning a blade made of soul.

“Wha--? No! I would never hurt him! You murdered my husband, you bastard!” Xero screamed. He hugged the body closer to his chest. He prayed for a miracle, like that day when Revek had been attacked by a graverobber, and by a sheer miracle they managed to pull through. This would be just like that, Markoth would wake up any second now. The dream bond on Markoth’s wrist no longer glowed. He was gone.

\----

What was going on? What happened to Markoth? Was he okay? Hallow slowly approached Xero’s voice, he had to make sure his friend was okay.

“No! Hallow! Get away from him!” Their father yelled. In a moment, they felt a hand grab them, and then the sound of shattering chitin. Gentle hands picked them up and pulled them close to their father’s chest.

“It’s okay, my child, it’s okay. Oh gods, someone! Get a doctor! There’s been a murder!” The King yelled. “It’s going to be okay, I promise. Everything’s okay.”

Only a few feet away from the pair laid Xero’s head, a foot away from his body. Markoth was beyond help, he was dead before the doctors even arrived.

They were rushed away from the scene and left with Isma while their father spoke to their mother. The White Lady was crying when she left the room. Dryya would be devastated, she cared about Xero like he was her brother. Thistlewind, the second moth diplomat, cried over their brother's corpse. They had to be dragged away so the body could be moved, but they didn't leave Markoth's side until Markoth and Xero were buried. What remained of the moth tribe mourned their losses.

Their father explained what happened, that they wouldn’t be playing with Xero again because he had to leave, because he got sick. They cried, they loved Xero, he was their best friend. Why did he get sick? Why did he have to leave? Was it because of their siblings? Did they do this because they wouldn’t come home?

They were tucked back into bed and there they cried more.

They had to do something, they had already lost four friends due to their selfishness. They needed to open the door to the Abyss.


End file.
